Rune Factory 4 Review
Developer Neverland Co
Publisher Marvelous AQL
Platform 3DS
Release Date Out Now.
Rune Factory returns with its fourth installment of the popular spin-off series of “Harvest Moon”. Those who are familiar with Harvest Moon will immediately feel at home with Rune Factory. It builds on what HM had established in the past including farming, cooking and crafting in a day/night system with seasons. Whilst also stuffing in all the essential elements required of a typical role-playing game, like fighting monsters, questing for objects, and dungeon crawling. For the first time in the series, players can select either male or female heroes to venture forth into the world with.
The story is very straightforward; the airship your character is travelling on is hijacked by bandits, and in the midst of it all, you, the player, gets kicked out – into fresh air. Next thing you know, you wake up with amnesia after landing on a dragon (a dragon god no less) who mistakes you for royalty and requests that you take over as prince or princess of Selphia, the kingdom you have dropped into. Because logic.
In any case, the first ten hour stint of the game is spent getting you used to the controls, how the game works, speaking with the townsfolk, learning how to fight against monsters, and essentially teach you what you’re striving for in the long run, which is to tend a profitable farm, grow lots of fresh veggies and flowers, and running a kingdom whilst pandering to the requests of your subjects.
10 hours of a tutorial might seem like a long time, but it’s really not – there are plenty of things to do, not to mention the various requests that you are given along the way. On the rare occasion you do get bored, however, you are not restricted to just the town stomping grounds – plenty of beginner areas to explore outside the gates will help your character increase their various skills (walking is actually a skill in this game – easiest skill level up ever, I reckon). However, there is a restriction on how much you can do in a day – along with a health bar, there exists what’s called a Rune Point bar, and various actions like ploughing the ground or sowing seeds will deduct from it. When it has been depleted, any action after that will penalise your health bar heavily. There has been moments when cooking a complicated dish has made my character faint, and end up with an increasingly hefty bill from Dr. Jones. No, seriously, that’s his name.
Getting your character some sleep will help stave off illness and recover your health and Rune points, so you can get back to farming/fishing/saving the kingdom. The cycle of collecting your harvests, cooking dishes, mining, gathering lumber and other activities every day can become a little repetitive, but everything in the game has a purpose, and the crops you grow can be sold for cash, the lumber and stone can expand your room and storage, and ultimately, it’s worth it when you start coining it in, and attracting more visitors.
It’s not all lonely farming and adventuring, however, as you can speak and interact with the townsfolk, who, after you befriend them, might even accompany you for a period of time. Most are equipped with weapons already, so there’s no fear of bringing them to a dungeon for a bit of extra monster slaying power. Add into that a more complex romance system than previous games, you have six potential suitors of the opposite sex to choose from and develop a relationship with. Details about the kingdom’s stance on LGBT issues are vague at best, but I digress. All your suitors widely vary in their preferences, things they like and dislike, and their personalities couldn’t be more different.
Behind the scenes in the game development department, the music is quite catchy, and is appropriate for all the environments that you encounter. Every season has its own theme, making for a refreshing experience as time rolls on. The artwork, to which a large portion of the game is dedicated to, is stunningly beautiful – the town on its own is rich with detail and vibrant colour, and it does a great job of showcasing all the characters, whether it’s in the game intro or as you meet them.
The game mechanics are solid and robust, taking the tried and tested functions of previous titles and giving them more polish. As well as churning out an easy to grasp battle system, including the use of special attacks and certain magic spells you acquire as you trawl through dungeons, it is simple, but very effective. It doesn’t try to overcomplicate it, which is brilliant – considering that the player is already on a learning curve with the sheer amount of activities available to them.
Overall: Ridiculously addictive, virtually infinite (in the best way possible), and continues to entertain long after the main story has ended, Rune Factory 4 is the RPG that keeps on giving. All it asks is some patience and effort in return.
A bit like real life, really.
SCORE 4.5/5
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